


Caffeine Conveniences

by kxtharsis



Category: Sherlock (TV)
Genre: Barista Sherlock, Boys In Love, Caffeine, Coffee, Coffee Shop Dates, College AU, Cuteness overload, Early morning talks, Falling In Love, Flirting, Fluff, Johnlock - Freeform, Kissing, M/M, Pining, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Uni John, coffee shop AU, kinda OOC
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-23
Updated: 2018-05-23
Packaged: 2019-05-12 23:37:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,325
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14737955
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kxtharsis/pseuds/kxtharsis
Summary: john is overloaded on early morning classes and the only thing that gets him moving in the morning is coffee. sherlock works in a coffee shop on campus and he makes the perfect personalized coffee for anyone who asks- because he can deduce the flavor you'd most enjoy as well as calculate exactly how much caffeine would be most effective





	Caffeine Conveniences

One fine day, in the early morning of September, John Watson walked briskly toward a nearby coffee shop. It had been a week since university started and he needed to start getting used to getting through the early mornings. To do so, he needed the help of his top priority and number one partner in facing all nighters: caffeine.

He was really glad when he arrived at Barts the week before and found a nice and cozy coffee shop just a few buildings away from his dorm. He would literally die without even a small pinch of something caffeinated in his drinks. He lived for the taste and the bounce it gives him for each day that passed.

He shivered slightly, wrapping his coat tighter around his body, blowing softly into his hands and rubbing them together to keep himself warm. As usual, the weather in London was frigid. You would think that a Londoner like John would be used to the cold by now but, surprise surprise, the young man was actually fond of anything that gives him warmth which is the reason why you can usually find him on a sofa, wrapped in a warm and fuzzy blanket, and holding a steaming cup of coffee.

He opened the door to the café, the wind chimes ringing as the soft and cold breeze swept slowly into the room. John yawned softly, lifting his hand up to cover his mouth whilst looking around for a vacant seat. Turns out, he wasn't the only one with the same idea of coming to the shop this early in the morning.

A curly haired figure could be seen sitting in one of the booths, a laptop on the table in front of him and an empty cup of tea set down to his right. He was typing swiftly, eyes too focused on the screen to notice the newcomer, at least, John thought so.

There were no signs of a barista or any employee in the front which frustrated the caffeine freak a tad bit because he needed his fill immediately or there was going to be a big problem.

Sighing deeply through his nose, he proceeds to the back of the room towards the corner, past the curly-haired lad. He set his things on the table, pulled out the chair, and sat glumly.

He sighed once again, drumming his fingers repeatedly, eyes trained towards the entrance. Minutes passed by and still, there were no signs of anyone coming inside. John closed his eyes, having an internal debate within himself about whether he should stay and wait or leave and be a grumpy asshole for the rest of the day. Choosing the former, he sighed once again, grumbling lowly under his breath while taking out his laptop, books, and a yellow pad. Might as well get some work done.

He pulled out his earphones and plugged it into his phone and soon, his ears were filled with the aesthetically appealing sound of The 1975's song "Paris". He submerged himself into his unfinished note-taking homework for a class he doesn't remember the name of. His handwriting was bad and his eyes felt droopier than usual. He quickly changes the song to a more upbeat one as he yawned, not bothering to cover his mouth.

He managed to write a considerable amount of information on his notebook before the song finished and another song followed. By now, his head was twitching. Every time his eyes closed and his head fell, he would jerk back awake. His handwriting was worse than ever and he felt dead tired.

A bittersweet aroma shook him out of his trance. One eye opened and there in front of him lay the cure to all the pain, exhaustion, and grogginess he has bottled up in his body: a tall mug of hot coffee topped with the most heavenly looking cream John's ever seen in his entire 20 years of existence. He carefully set aside his things before sliding the mug close and taking a sip.

Peaceful. Warm. Soft. Accomplished.

He was attacked with all of these emotions at once and even though it didn't take effect immediately, he was glad that he had waited for the barista to show up because not only did he feel better, but he had just taken the best coffee he's ever had in his entire life.

John looked up from his drink and astonishingly, the barista had also left a rather big chocolate chip cookie. The 20 year old felt warmth spread throughout his soul and up to his cheeks as he gingerly slid the plate close and took a soft bite. His senses were filled with overwhelming pleasure that one could almost drown in it, or to put things in a pleasant way, swim in it.

He quickly but carefully took another swig from the mug, his eyes rolling back in satisfaction, sighing softly as the taste relaxed and somehow made him feel more alive.

"I'm glad you like it."

John turned his head towards the source of the voice and saw the same curly haired boy leaning on the counter, a slight smile on his lips and a hint of amusement in his eyes.

The blonde blushed lightly, placing the mug back down and clearing his throat. "Uh, thank you for the coffee. I really enjoyed it."

The boy nodded slightly, eyes skirting his face as if he was searching for something. "Yeah, I can see that." John frowned, noticing the way the boy who he still didn't know the name of looking at him intently. "Is there something on my face?"

He rolled his eyes. "A lot of things are on your face and a lot of other people's faces, mister..." The smaller of the two held out his hand, smiling softly before saying, "John Watson. Freshman. You?"

The curly dude stared at his hand before clearing his throat. "Sherlock Holmes. Part-time barista, sophomore and I don't shake hands." John frowned, reluctantly redrawing his hand. "Oh, okay... But- um, thank you for the coffee and cookie? How much is this?"

Sherlock shook his head. "It's for free. You have class soon, right?" John tilted his head, eyes narrowing. "Yeah, I do. How did you know that?" The tall man shrugged, walking back to his place behind the register. "The only students who come here at this time are the ones with 7:30 AM classes and guessing from the time you entered, you have one too which is a Psych class, am I right?"

John blinked, astonished. "What? How did you know all of that?" Sherlock rolled his eyes once again. "Easy. Book title? 'Psychology And Its Structures'. Your notebook literally has 'Psych 101' as its label and the majority of Psych majors I know have a large collection of poetry much as you do and of course, the music you listen to," he pointed to the phone, "My Chemical Romance, which is a band known for its deep, harsh, and realistic lyrics. Maybe you've had some painful experiences in the past which is a big part of why you decided to take up this course? So you could help people? Oh and one question, is vanilla really your favorite flavor for coffee and is there enough caffeine in there or am I wrong about those?"

"Amazing!" Sherlock stopped the slight smile from appearing on his face after hearing those words and instead replaced it with a confused look. "You're not annoyed?"

John smiled widely with so much enthusiasm. "Are you joking? That was more accurate than my own mother's view of me! Is that why this drink is so damn good? How'd you know all of those facts?"

He raised an eyebrow. "I'm just... very observant." John shook his head, still smiling in excitement. "Wow. That's so cool!"

Sherlock shuffled in his place, coughing awkwardly as a very awkward smile graced his face. "Uh, sorry. I might have added too much caffeine in your coffee after all. People don't usually respond like that after I say stuff like that."

John once again tilted his cute little head to the side as his eyes wandered with confusion. "Well, they're all probably just afraid because that was quite weird, to be honest. And shut up, the coffee was great."

Sherlock stared, wide-eyed as the adorable man in front of him started taking a sip from his coffee once again.

_Wow. This Watson dude... He's so damn cute._

As the barista blushed lightly, still staring, John's eyes flitted to his phone before his eyes widened, suddenly shooting up from his seat. "Oh shit. I have to go get to class. See you later, Sherlock!"

Waving goodbye with his things in hand, he left Sherlock Holmes inside the coffee shop, breathless and slightly infatuated.

* * *

Well, not slightly.

Weeks passed and ever since then, the two boys would meet up in the coffee shop at 6:15 AM. Every morning, it was a different flavor. A new concoction Sherlock brewed up especially for John. It was what spiced up and gave life to the blonde boy.

They slowly started being more flirty with each other, subtle and soft touches here and there mostly initiated by Sherlock while John remained slightly oblivious to his advances but of course, he knew Sherlock liked him and he did too.

That day, John was drowned in school work and didn't look too good but, to Sherlock's surprise, the small determined creature still managed to smile his cute,  _sweet_  little smile and be his sassy little self.

Sherlock, if possible, fell even harder.

"You're staring." Mycroft smirked at his little brother's unnoticeable smitten expression - to others it was but not to his dear brother - while facing the studious lad.

Sherlock rolled his eyes before continuing to wipe the counter, eyes still discreetly looking up to stare at him. "Obviously."

The older of the brothers sighed, wiping his hands with a towel before clapping his hand on his brother's shoulder. "I'm rooting for you both so tell him soon. Good luck."

As Mycroft retreated to the back room, Sherlock reflected on his words. The two of them were practically dating. They didn't kiss or have sex like other couples, sure, but they both knew that their feelings for each other were mutual, what with how they look, act, and speak to each other. Then, Sherlock came to a decision.

He was going to make things official.

So, he got to work, coming to the decision of whipping up his very own patented beverage: a caramel macchiato with a spice of pumpkin and a shot of vanilla.

John sighed softly through his nose, pinching the top of it, eyes closed in exhaustion. He was lucky enough that his professor decided in the last minute to cancel class for an emergency because it gave him more time to finish and finalize some details and information in his project. John was actually confident with himself and his work and he knew that he could pull the project off easily. But he didn't just want to pull it off. He wanted to amaze his professor. Wanted to see the surprise and admiration in his classmates' eyes. He wanted to be recognized for his hard work and to do that, he needed to perfect his project.

"Hey," he opened one eye, hearing Sherlock's voice, "you look like you need something of mine inside you." John glared half jokingly and half in incredulity at his statement. "Seriously, Sherlock? But thanks. That was a terrible, terrible pun by the way."

The barista shrugged, sitting down and grinning as John took a sip from the drink, eyes immediately shooting open. "Whoa, this is a new one."

The raven nodded, smiling. "Yep. This is my very one caramel macchiato, patented all by yours truly." John's eyes bulged out even more, cheeks growing warm. "Y-You mean  _the_  caramel macchiato?"

_The one that you said that you would only make for your significant others?_

The raven nodded again. "O-Oh... So, y-you actually like me? Or is this somehow still platonic despite the fact that you decided to only make this for your loved ones?" Sherlock scoffed slightly, shaking his head with a soft grin. "I thought I was obvious enough. Hey," he lifted John's chin towards him, saying, "I like you, John. I really do."

The blond took a furious sip from the mug before wiping his mouth, taking a deep breath and looking Sherlock in the eye. "I-I like you too." Sherlock grinned at him. "Yeah, I kinda got that from the way you've been acting."

John frowned, pushing him away softly. "Shut up..." The curly-haired laughed and pulled the smaller man into his arms, digging his face into his hair, breathing in his scent. "I love this. It's nice to finally have a label for our relationship."

"Wait, so we're boyfriends now!?"

"Well, yeah? Unless, you don't want to?"

"Of course I do!" He looked up to see the uncertain look Sherlock had on his face, frowning. He cupped his cheeks softly, nervously biting his lower lip, a habit Sherlock noticed him doing whenever he was nervous.

A soft and warm sensation on his mouth interrupted his thoughts. His eyes widened but he didn't hesitate to reciprocate his boyfriend's actions, eagerly wrapping his arms tightly around John's waist, pulling him in deeper. A small whimper erupted from the blond's closed mouth, reluctantly opening his mouth as invitation for the taller boy. Their tongues met, John immediately submitting himself to Sherlock and closing his eyes, hands reaching behind his neck to wrap around.

They kissed and everything in that moment felt right. So did the many of thousands moments after that.

"Did that convince you?" John whispered breathlessly, eyes seeking out Sherlock's, cheeks still blazing.

Sherlock nodded before pulling him in for another kiss that made them both feel more alive than any other caffeinated drink ever would.

 


End file.
